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MINNEAPOLIS — Zaccharie Risacher scored 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting Thursday, including 4-of-8 from 3-point range, as the Dallas Mavericks lost 133-94 to the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center.
Risacher added 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and a block in 24:41 off the bench. He did not play in the first quarter of the loss, which ended Dallas’ three-game winning streak and dropped the Mavericks to 7-5.
Before Thursday, Risacher had scored 21 points combined across his previous five games. Through 11 games, he was averaging 7.1 points on 38.8% shooting and had made 9 of his 36 3-point attempts.
“I felt like I was a little frustrated by my shooting this season. I didn’t feel like I was comfortable as I used to be, and I felt like just not losing confidence and keep working made that possible,” Risacher said. “I feel like it’s just like a reflection of the work I’m putting every day. And yeah, I mean, it’s a good sign.”
Zaccharie Risacher Had Made 9 Of 36 3-Pointers Before Thursday
The Atlanta Hawks drafted Risacher first overall in 2024. As a rookie, he averaged 12.6 points in 75 games, made 35.5% of his 3-point attempts, and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting.
His second season brought 9.6 points per game in 67 appearances, 46 of them starts, with 36.8% shooting from deep. Dallas acquired him July 19 in a three-team trade with Atlanta and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In Dallas, he had started 2 of 11 games and played 24.2 minutes per night before Thursday. His 3-point mark with the Mavericks now sits at 13-of-44 after the 4-of-8 night.
He checked in to start the second quarter and scored 7 points in it. His first basket was a 23-foot 3-pointer off a Caleb Martin pass 46 seconds into the period, and he followed it with a putback and a transition dunk off a Cooper Flagg steal during the run that cut Minnesota’s lead to 43-42.
In the third quarter, he scored on a layup from Naji Marshall and finished an alley-oop dunk after a Marshall steal with 32 seconds left. He also blocked a Jaden McDaniels dunk attempt in the period.
Two of his baskets came on transition dunks off steals by Flagg and Marshall. Dallas finished with 23 fast-break points and 28 transition possessions, scoring 1.071 points per possession on them, according to Synergy Sports data.
“I feel like they’re solid, they’re solid,” Risacher explained. “Like I said, we let them play their game, and I feel like playing with movements, transition, passing the ball will be the best for us.”
Risacher scored 11 points in the fourth quarter, when Dallas played without Flagg and Kyrie Irving. He hit three 3-pointers in a span of 2:39, two of them off passes from Walter Clayton Jr. and the third a 25-foot step-back with 1:59 left.
Risacher On Attacking Rudy Gobert And Minnesota’s Defense
Rudy Gobert, a four-time Defensive Player of the Year, entered the night averaging 12.1 rebounds. Gobert and Joan Beringer combined for 5 blocks, and Dallas shot 21-of-42 in the paint while Minnesota went 37-of-54.
“So, like, a bit of what I said earlier, like, they’re real physical, and he’s tall, he’s a great defender,” Risacher said. “So, like, us moving the ball a little bit more and space the floor would be, like, an option, would be a great option.”
“I feel like we just keep the ball moving, passing the ball, and just keep us moving, stretching the floor,” Risacher continued. “And like I said earlier, playing with pace and playing fast, so they don’t, like, so the defense is not set already.”
Minnesota entered Thursday first in the NBA in defensive rating at 106.1. The Timberwolves forced 19 Dallas turnovers, and Flagg and Irving combined for 22 points on 9-of-23 shooting after scoring 78 together in Monday’s win over the Indiana Pacers.
“So, like, the communication gotta be a little bit better between every one of us,” Risacher said. “We talked about it in the locker room, and that’s why it’s great about this team. We can talk to each other with no filter. Nobody is mad or anything.”
“We just got good communication, and I felt like we should have done a better job earlier in the game,” Risacher continued.
LaMelo Ball and Bones Hyland combined for 46 points and 17 assists, going 11-of-16 from 3-point range. Minnesota assisted on 33 of its 52 field goals.
“I feel like we let them play their basketball, and I feel like, talking about me, like, putting more pressure on the ball, like, getting physical, so they’re not as comfortable as they were,” Risacher said. “Helping each other out, I mean, that’s what we’ve been doing, and that’s how we, that’s how we won games. And I feel like we just gotta keep doing communication, playing hard on defense, playing physical, and helping each other out.”
Minnesota scored 74 points in the paint and 36 of them before halftime, when it led 67-52. The Timberwolves shot 61.4% in the first half.
“I agree. I agree,” Risacher said. “I feel like we also got to do a better job to execute the game plan and, like, be there for each other.”
“And we’re gonna do a better job, basically,” Risacher continued.
Dallas continues its three-game road trip Saturday against the Cleveland Cavaliers, with tip-off at 6:30 p.m. CT, and closes it Sunday against the Boston Celtics at 5 p.m. CT.
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